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Topic: question for queen rearers (Read 7220 times)

I am going to raise a few queens this summer. I have a Jenter kit from bushy mountain and this weekend built a cloakeing broard. My question is when I remove the floor and make the colony queen right to finish cells wont they try to swarm when these are capped

Maybe this was just a dumb question. I cant find any reference to this so I'm just assuming its not a problem. Maybe these cells are just considered supercedure cells. Half the colony thinks they are queenless. Half think they are queen right. Then the next day, their are all queen right. Are they just confussed as I am sometimes

Have you read Micheal bush's site on the cloake board?? I would comment but I don't have any real answers for you other than what I have read. My understanding is that you remove these sells around the capping date, (day 8-13 range) and then those cells will be placed in nucs with a frame or two of nurse bees (they refer to these as mateing nucs) then give her time to get bred and place her where you want.....

I just order 12 cyprus nuc boxes myself to start queen raising this year also. I am also looking at a Jenter kit, but strongly planning on useing Mel Dissolken system instead. seems a lot simpler to me, the downside being I am not sure how to remove the queen cells when they are on plastic fondation. on the ther hand I am wondering if that plastic isn't a perfect handle, and easier to use than queen cups....

BTW the cyprus nucs are from rossman, they have a great setup for 4 nucs with all the frames covers and a stand for 100.. or 110 for the samesetup with deep frames, not sure I am allowed to post this, but since i AM NOT SELLING THEM ITS OKAY i THINK

My understanding is that you remove these sells around the capping date,

No this is not true. They need to be incubater through the capper stage and there would be alot of danger of damaging them at that stage. They are removed when ripe a day or so before they hatch or hair roller cages installed and allowed to hatch.

I do not use the jenter system, or a cloake board, or any of the systems mentioned. I am old school from the sense that I graft into wax cell, that are placed into wooden cell cups. I graft with a Chinese bamboo grafter. About as basic as it gets. I get all my supplies from Kelley's, and it way cheaper than the queen systems on the market.

Most of the systems sold on the market, are really systems designed to take the grafting out of the mix. It is the one thing so many have problems with, but also one of the easiest things to do once you learn how.

I graft, so I can control the exact date I pull cells, when to have the breeding nucs ready, when I can pull queens out and sell to customers, and a host of other things. Some of the other systems are designed for the queen to lay into cells, and then you find out a couple days later, that she did not do that. And many times, if you add up the number of steps, its supposed to be easier, but it really is no easier than just grafting into a hive using a cell frame. But each product out there markets based on ease and convenience, but it's not. It just takes out grafting, that's all. The part about moving cells, and how many times you get into the hive really does not change.

For what it's worth, this is what I do.....I remove a queen from a strong well fed colony. I wait 2-3 days, then remove any queen cells started. I collect the royal jelly from those cells, and use their own royal jelly to graft right back into the same colony. one of two things must happen after day 10 on the queen calendar. 1) You must go back in and remove any missed queen cells (You can pull them and make a nuc) or 2) you must place the cell bar of now capped queen cells, above an excluder. This is to prevent any missed queen cells from coming out and killing all your queens. remember, I grafted into a hive that was making queens cells about three days ahead of my grafting. I then pull my cells on day 13. That gives me an extra day to place the cells, even if they start emerging on day 15.

The nice thing about grafting is that you know in 48 hours if you did a good job or not. I've had a bad graft and you pull the bars, and simply graft again.

If I was making cells just for myself and I was not under pressure to have queens on certain dates based on orders, I may try some of the other methods. I have tried about every method out there. But I still like the control and output of grafting.

I'll defer on commenting on cloake boards and Mel's system. I would rather tell you what I do, and keep it positive... :roll:

I would not move cells until at least day 12. I know some will mention they get away with moving open queen cells, etc., I just try to pass on the optimal situation, and thus keep your failures to a minimum. ;)

There are many ways to raise queens. The basic queen calendar, the risk, timing, almost always stays the same. The main thing to not allow to happen is a rogue queen to kill your cells.

that explains a lot, the comments on moving them are sound. I have read and heard everthing from just capped to not until the last minute. I understand your comments on grafting and the extent we go to to avoid it.... not all of us have teh eyes or hands to accomplish grafting as well as others. I do think concrns about temp and how much jelly and all the other details intimade us a lot......

Mels system seemed simple obviulsly you see a hole or two in the plan? My thoughts on new queens were not for sale so I am not as worried about timing as you may be, just something simple. I especialy like Mels thoughts on late requeening as I have noticed that july queens outlay all my others so far....

Curious when you finaly do move the queen cells to the breeding nuc or incubator, how careful do you have to be with temp and josteling? is flipping them upside down and such as you work an issue? or are they pretty tough by day 13?

Thank you also BjornMy problem with grafting is my eyes. When i was 45 i could have seen a egg in a cell at 20ft and maybe still could (distance is amasing) but since then I have been having trouble reading my watch and things like that. this is the reason that I bought the jenter system. I cant see close up and my arms are no longer long enough!!! I would really like to hear your oppinions on the cloakeing board so please speak up. I have sorted through many, many oppinions on this site and as with everything else have to make up my own mind for what works for me. thanks again dan

I would not move cells until at least day 12. I know some will mention they get away with moving open queen cells, etc.,

day 12? are you using the queen calender?, I pull mine on day 10 from the time I graft.

Yes Ted, I always refer to a 16 day queen calendar. (Egg layed on day 1, graft a four day egg(no such thing) or 1 day larvae, queen cell capped on day nine, queen emerges day 16, and so on) Most books and graphs show and indicate a queen emerging on day 16, etc. I have a grafting sheet that is set up this way. That way, regardless of the type system you use, you have the flexibility to to use it whether your counting from day 1 when an egg is layed in a jenter system, or your actually starting on day 4 with grafting a 1 day larvae. The sheet allows you to put in the day when you started, and it counts out the days for you, indicating automatically when to pull cells, when they should open, etc.

Your pulling yours day 10 after graft which would be day 14 on the queen calendar (no problem with that). I'll assume you good enough to graft a 1 day larvae... :-D

But indicating a queen pull on day 10, as many beekeepers are looking at a 16 day queen calendar as shown in most books, will give some the false idea that it's day 10 on the queen calendar. I just find it easier to get those raising queens, regardless of the system, to call day nine when a queen cell is capped, and day 16, the day a queen emerges, just easier to understand for most.

Goes like this.....

Day 1....Egg is layedDay 4....Graft 1 day old larvaeDay 9....Cells cappedDay 13..Move cells to nucsDay 16..Cells open

Well that explians the differences I keep seeing in dates very well...... Could you address the issue as to how "fragile" or temp sensite the queens are at that stage?

Thanks

charlie,You can always sneak a peak after 48-72 hours of grafting to see what cells are being made. You just need to keep the frame straight up and down, don't bump, etc. Be very careful.

Some say don't do this. But if you even had a double queen, where you removed the first queen, than grafted, and waited ten days to find out they made you ZERO queens.... I'd be peaking. And when you first start, you may have just a crappy graft for a host of reasons.

So peak after a couple days. Then leave them alone till after day 11 on the queen calendar. Up to this day, they are in contact with the royal jelly plug. If they lose contact, they will die. So do not move or mess with them till AFTER day 11.

After that day, you can move them, but every day you wait, the queen is better developed and less likely to get damaged.

As I said previously, I like to move mine on day 13. And I lose very little queen cells. But caution is still given in that you must not let them sit in the sun, drop them, etc. Get them in a hive/nuc as soon as possible after removing them.

So I take it normal mid 70's temp is not an issue then as long as you don't prolong it?? I am thinking an hour or two while you move things around?

Charlie

I always have my nucs ready the day before. If it is cool out, a heated wet towel in a small foam cooler will help keep them warm. Whether it too hot or too cold, do whatever you can to keep them near 90 degrees.

some where along the line my thread took a left turn. Bjorn can you tell me your problems with the cloakeing board

danno,The use of the cloake board has been used with grafting and raising eggs above the excluder and cloake board.

But the standard procedure, which include switching the position of the bottom half of the hive, pumping up the Field bee numbers above the excluder, removing the cloake board and relying on the queen excluder in the finishing stages, all present steps, additional work, and some dangers in doing so. I just do not favor such steps.

My own opinion is that so many people seem to go out of there way to come up with some special little way of doing something so they can be set apart, or able to promote something different, that it just adds to confusion of a very simple idea....which is, make a hive queenless, graft some eggs, and make some queens.

I guess I would promote cloake boards if I made and sold them. :roll: But I don't. And I see them as just another thing to spend money on... :-D I have mine in the barn... ;)